If Brian Kelly keeps winning at Notre Dame, NFL will keep calling

FILE - In this Nov. 3, 2012 file photo, Notre Dame running back George Atkinson III, right, makes a move to get past Pittsburgh linebacker Todd Thomas during the first half of an NCAA college football game in South Bend, Ind. Atkinson III and Amir Carlisle head into the season-opener against Temple looking to prove they can be reliable every-down backs. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy, File)

Brian Kelly begins his fourth season coaching Notre Dame on Saturday. At such time as the lawyers and other parsers finish their jobs, he will be contracted to coach many more after that.

In the meantime, the 51-year-old who hasn’t coached a fourth year anywhere since 1990 continues to put down roots, to reach out, to invoke ideas of partnerships and transparency in all compartments of campus life.

“My voice doesn’t need to be heard, per se, as much as I want to be in the loop when those decisions are made,” Kelly said after practice Thursday.

“Being here, for me, regardless of what the record is, accelerates that conversation. We’re building a program, not just one year. One record should not be about how you run a program. This is more about how to run a program year in and year out.”

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So Kelly sounds like he will be around for a while, and everyone can relax - until the NFL calls again.

Months after contact with the Eagles came and went, not even Kelly denies there will be opportunities if all goes well - he said as much on a national radio show last week - and the direction of Notre Dame football rests on whether no means no ... or if it means something slightly more conditional.

Kelly has said the Eagles conversation was out of “intrigue,” to provide him perspective. He has told the South Bend Tribune there will be no more courtships, that he’s either in or out. Kelly has said on Dan Patrick’s syndicated radio show that he “would not feel like I missed something” without an NFL stint.

But so many others have had it good: Pete Carroll, Jim Harbaugh, Chip Kelly, Greg Schiano. And off they went.

“It’s the challenge,” said Matt Millen, the former Lions executive and current ESPN analyst. “It’s still the mountain, man. You gotta walk the mountain. Why do you do it? Because it’s there. How do you know where you stand, how do you know what you are, how do you know if you’ve gotten better? There it sits, right in front of you.”

On the condition of continued Notre Dame success, there is little doubt another chance will confront Kelly again.

It’s far from the dominant trend, but at least one college coach has migrated to the NFL for four offseasons running.

“The NFL-hiring-college-guy thing kind of swings both ways, depending on how the college guys do,” said Mike Mayock, the NBC and NFL Network analyst. “Right now it’s a little hotter. Let’s face it: If your goal is national championships and BCS games and you’re chasing that every year at a high level, (Kelly) is going to attract attention.”

The desire for something new, combined with less of a schematic chasm between the levels, fuels some churn.

“The game is getting opened up more,” Millen said. “The pro game is getting more like the college game. So a couple of years back, you saw the pistol (formation) in college football, and now you see it in the NFL. There’s more and more transition from one to the other. Then they look for innovation.”

So this is about what Kelly wants.

There is a belief that nothing but a “chartered” NFL job, so to speak, could get his attention: An established franchise, probably with pieces in place or the chance to acquire them easily. No gut rehab.

That new Notre Dame contract? No amount of money would stop the school from firing Kelly. (See: Weis, Charlie.) No amount of money, incoming or outgoing, would stop Kelly from leaving if he so desired.

Athletic director Jack Swarbrick wouldn’t contextualize it that way, but he agreed there is no coach-proofing a program. If a coach leaves, Swarbrick said, “you can’t insulate yourself from that risk.”

“I just try to provide a supportive environment,” Swarbrick said. “So much that may affect circumstances like that are beyond your control. I don’t know how many people thought (Butler basketball coach) Brad Stevens would go to the Boston Celtics. Those circumstances reflect everything from family dynamics to professional challenges.”

It is about what Kelly wants, and whether he should be careful what he wishes for.

Chip Kelly told Newsday in early August that coaching “football at its highest level” drove his decision to leave Oregon for the Eagles.

And then there was Alabama’s Nick Saban, one day after winning a national title in January: “In the two years that I was (with the Dolphins), I had a very, very difficult time thinking that I could impact the organization in the way that I wanted to or the way that I was able to in college.”

Coincidentally enough, nine days ago, Brian Kelly continued to sound more like that Saban than someone aiming to retrace Saban’s path at the next level.

“When you’re the head coach at Notre Dame, it’s so important that you keep in perspective why you’re doing this job,” Kelly said. “And that is you want to be around 18- to 21-year-old kids who are the best and the brightest in the world. You’re not doing it for any other reason.”

How long will those reasons hold up?

That could be measured season by season, as long as Kelly keeps Notre Dame right where he wants it.